The BMW Group is accelerating its sustainability activities and will use cast aluminium wheels, produced with 100% green energy, for BMW and MINI brand vehicles from 2024 onwards. For the BMW Group, this is another step towards its goal of creating the most sustainable supply chain in the automotive industry. The transition mainly concerns the energy-intensive electrolysis used in aluminium production and the wheel casting process. To this end, corresponding agreements have been concluded with all the BMW Group's wheel suppliers.
So far, wheels account for about 5% of CO2 in the supply chain. Switching to a more sustainable production based on green energy will cut these emissions by more than half. The BMW Group supplies around 10 million light alloy wheels a year, with 95% of these being made from cast aluminium.
Emission savings CO 2 up to 500,000 tonnes per year
Through independent audits, the BMW Group can ensure the conscious and sustainable use of aluminium by contracted producers, saving up to 500,000 tonnes of CO2 per year. "Green energy is one of the biggest drivers for reducing CO2 in our supply chain. We have already signed more than 400 contracts with suppliers, including wheel and aluminium suppliers, requiring them to use green energy," said Joachim Post, Member of the Board of Management of BMW AG, responsible for Purchasing and Supplier Network.
Aluminium has good recycling properties, which makes it easier to melt down old wheels in the context of the circular economy. This eliminates the need for an energy-intensive electrolysis process to produce the primary raw material. At the same time, the secondary raw material must also meet the BMW Group's superior requirements for quality, design, safety and mechanical properties.
Η MINI pioneer in the use of sustainable light alloy cast wheels
MINI will become a pioneer in this area in 2023, when it starts using light alloy cast wheels made from 70% secondary aluminium in the new generation of the MINI Countryman. The combination of 100% green energy for production and 70% secondary raw material content can reduce CO2 up to 80%, compared to conventional production processes.
Certification by the Responsible Aluminium Management Initiative
The BMW Group has been actively involved for many years in international initiatives focusing on the standardisation of raw material extraction. These include the Aluminium Stewardship Initiative (ASI), an international non-profit organisation supported by environmental and industry associations, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), producers and aluminium processors. The BMW Group, welcomes the fact that many of its aluminium wheel suppliers have already joined the ASI initiative and are making a significant contribution to the creation of an environmentally and socially responsible aluminium value chain in this way.
ASI has already certified the light metal foundry at the BMW Group plant in Lanzhou in December 2019 for the sustainable use of aluminium, confirming that it is managed consciously and responsibly.
Systematic implementation of sustainability objectives
The switch to 100% green energy for the production of cast aluminium wheels is another step towards reducing CO2 in the BMW Group's supplier network. The goal by 2030 is to reduce emissions throughout the supply chain by 20%, from 2019 levels. The systematic increase in the proportion of secondary aluminium through this process is a further contribution to sustainability in line with the principles of the circular economy, which the BMW Group is looking forward to implementing.
From 2021, the BMW Group is sourcing aluminium from the United Arab Emirates, which is manufactured exclusively using electricity, which is in turn derived from solar energy. The aluminium produced in Dubai is shaped in the light metal foundry at the BMW Group's Landshut plant, where it is used to manufacture body parts and powertrain components. With 43,000 tonnes of electrically produced aluminium, around half of the annual requirements of the Landshot foundry can be met.
